SIR Tom Farmer is about to launch two businesses into the car service market he exited with the sale of Kwik-Fit four years ago.
He is poised to open two sites on the busy north-west approach to Edinburgh, and has at least another three prime motor retail sites where he retained the leasehold and has taken the tenancies back from Kwik-Fit.
New signs on the former Kwik-Fit flagship site at the Telford/Blackhall corner announce the launch of a new autocentre in the near future, while, half a mile away in Blackhall, Sir Tom has spared no expense on the refurbishment of a former family-owned garage and stone farmhouse.
The garage boasts that it will soon be ''Edinburgh's biggest tyre specialist'', while the stone building, Maidencraig House, is the headquarters for Sir Tom's new empire.
His other known sites are in Dunfermline, Bathgate, and Marchmont, Edinburgh.
Industry sources have claimed that Sir Tom may be targeting the executive market with a network of select repair centres linked to top manufacturers.
The launch of a stand-alone tyre specialist, however, looks like a head-on challenge to Kwik-Fit and its rivals.
Sir Tom sold Kwik-Fit for (pounds) 1bn, but held on to around 8% of its shares.
His property company, Morston Assets, is involved in retail developments in Scotland and England, and Sir Tom has said it has plans in the pipeline for projects worth (pounds) 850m.
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